Vehicle state presentation system, vehicle, terminal device, and vehicle state presentation method

ABSTRACT

A vehicle includes a notification unit that notifies an information processing device of a state of the vehicle; a reception unit that receives a first signal commanding the state to be maintained, from the information processing device; and a control unit that performs control such that maintains the state after lapse of a predetermined time as well when the reception unit receives the first signal within the predetermined time, and that performs control such that the state becomes a state different from the state after lapse of the predetermined time when the reception unit does not receive the first signal from the information processing device within the predetermined time.

This is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/896,599filed Jun. 9, 2020 (now U.S. Pat. No. 11,238,720), which in turn is aContinuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/132,763 filed Sep.17, 2018 (now U.S. Pat. No. 10,769,928), which claims the benefit ofJapanese Patent Application No. 2017-186795 filed in Japan on Sep. 27,2017. The disclosure of each of the prior applications is herebyincorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND 1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a vehicle state presentation systemthat communicates with a vehicle and performs a notification indicatinga state of the vehicle, a vehicle, a terminal device, and a vehiclestate presentation method.

2. Description of Related Art

A technique for notifying a user of a predetermined state of a vehiclehas been proposed. For example, outputting a sound from a speakerprovided in a vehicle or performing call transmission or mailtransmission to a mobile terminal of the user to perform a notificationwhen the user leaves the vehicle by a predetermined distance or apredetermined time has elapsed in a state in which a door is not lockedhas been proposed (See Japanese Unexamined Patent ApplicationPublication No. 2005-344335 (JP 2005-344335A) and Japanese UnexaminedPatent Application Publication No. 2010-205063 (JP 2010-205063 A)).Accordingly, the user can notice that the user has forgotten to lock thedoor and can return to the vehicle to take action, such as a doorlocking manipulation.

SUMMARY

When a user gets off the vehicle in a state in which a door of thevehicle is not locked or a lamp is lit, and leaves the state asdescribed above, a third party is likely to ride the vehicle or theamount of charging of a battery is likely to decrease, which is notdesirable. When the user leaves the vehicle, it is desirable that, forexample, all lamps are turned off, all of windows are closed, and all ofdoors are closed and locked in a state in which an engine is stopped andan ignition switch is turned off. When a notification indicating that astate of the vehicle is not the state as described above is performedthrough a sound from a speaker provided in the vehicle or when thenotification is performed visually on a lamp, a display, or the like,the notification is also perceived by a third party, and there is roomfor improvement in terms of security. When the notification is performedby performing call transmission or mail transmission to the mobileterminal of the user, the user is likely not to notice the notification.

The present disclosure provides a vehicle state presentation system, avehicle, a terminal device, and a vehicle state presentation methodcapable of notifying solely a user that a state of the vehicle is not apredetermined state when the user leaves the vehicle, in such a mannerthat solely the user easily notices the fact.

A first aspect of the present disclosure relates to a vehicle statepresentation system including a terminal device and a vehicle. Theterminal device includes an ear mounting unit that is mounted on an earof a user. The vehicle performs wireless communication with the terminaldevice. The vehicle includes a first communication unit thatcommunicates with the terminal device through wireless communication;and a first controller that monitors a state of the vehicle and causesthe first communication unit to transmit a notification signal to theterminal device. The notification signal indicates that a first state ofthe vehicle other than a predetermined state is detected. The terminaldevice includes a second communication unit that communicates with thevehicle through wireless communication; an output unit that is providedin the ear mounting unit and performs a notification to the user throughsound or vibration; and a second controller that causes the output unitto perform the notification to the user based on the notification signalreceived by the second communication unit when the terminal device movesout of a predetermined distance range in which the vehicle is included.

According to the first aspect of the present disclosure, it is possibleto notify solely the user that the state of the vehicle is not thepredetermined state through a sound or the like from the output unitmounted on the ear.

In the vehicle state presentation system according to the first aspectof the present disclosure, the second controller of the terminal devicemay include a determination unit that determines that the terminaldevice moves out of the predetermined distance range in which thevehicle is included when the second communication unit does not receivecommunication radio waves from the vehicle or when a strength of thecommunication radio waves which the second communication unit is equalto or smaller than a predetermined value.

According to the first aspect of the present disclosure, it is possibleto detect that the user wearing the terminal device has left the vehiclebased on the communication radio waves without providing any othermeans.

In the vehicle state presentation system according to the first aspectof the present disclosure, the second controller of the terminal devicemay cause the output unit to perform a notification to the useraccording to the notification signal when the second controllerdetermines that the state of the vehicle is the first state of thevehicle other than the predetermined state based on the notificationsignal received by the second communication unit.

According to the first aspect of the present disclosure, when the stateof the vehicle is not the predetermined state, it is possible to notifythe user of the fact.

In the vehicle state presentation system according to the first aspectof the present disclosure, the terminal device may further include aninput unit that receives a first input instructing the vehicle to be inthe predetermined state from the user. When the input unit receives thefirst input from the user who wears the terminal device and is presentwithin a range in which the user communicates with the vehicle after theoutput unit performs the notification according to the notificationsignal, the second controller causes the second communication unit totransmit a first instruction signal from to the vehicle, and the firstcontroller of the vehicle may execute an operation of setting thevehicle to the predetermined state when the first communication unitreceives the first instruction signal.

According to the first aspect of the present disclosure, even when theuser does not return to the vehicle, convenience can be improved sincethe vehicle can be caused to be in the predetermined state through aremote manipulation.

In the vehicle state presentation system according to the first aspectof the present disclosure, the first controller of the vehicle mayexecute an operation of setting the vehicle to the predetermined statewhen the first state other than the predetermined state of the vehiclecontinues for a predetermined period after the first communication unittransmits the notification signal.

According to the first aspect of the present disclosure, convenience canbe improved since the vehicle can be caused to be in the predeterminedstate without any action of the user.

In the vehicle state presentation system according to the first aspectof the present disclosure, the input unit of the terminal device mayfurther receive a second input instructing the vehicle to maintain acurrent state from the user. When the input unit receives the secondinput from the user who wears the terminal device and is present withina range in which the user communicates with the vehicle after thenotification according to the notification signal, the second controllermay cause the second communication unit to transmit a second instructionsignal to the vehicle. The first controller of the vehicle may executean operation of setting the vehicle to the predetermined state when thefirst communication unit does not receive the second instruction signalfor a predetermined period after the first communication unit transmitsthe notification signal and the first state of the vehicle other thanthe predetermined state continues, and may not execute the operation ofsetting the vehicle to the predetermined state when the firstcommunication unit receives the second instruction signal.

According to the first aspect of the present disclosure, when the userintends to leave the vehicle while maintaining the vehicle in the stateother than the predetermined state, the state other than thepredetermined state of the vehicle is maintained through a manipulationaccording to the intention. Thus, it is possible to improve convenience.

A second aspect of the present disclosure relates to a vehicle thatperforms wireless communication with a terminal device. The vehicleincludes a communication unit and a controller. The communication unitcommunicates with the terminal device through wireless communication.The terminal device includes an ear mounting unit including an outputunit having a speaker mounted on an ear of the user and performing anotification to the user. The controller monitors a state of the vehicleand causes the communication unit to transmit a notification signalindicating that a state of the vehicle other than a predetermined stateis detected to the terminal device.

According to the second aspect of the present disclosure, it is possibleto cause the terminal device that has received the notification signalto notify solely the user that the state of the vehicle is not thepredetermined state through a sound or the like from the output unitmounted on the ear.

A third aspect of the present disclosure relates to a terminal deviceincluding an ear mounting unit, a communication unit, an output unit,and a controller. The ear mounting unit is mounted on an ear of a user.The communication unit communicates with a vehicle through wirelesscommunication. The output unit is provided in the ear mounting unit andperforms a notification to the user through sound or vibration. Thecontroller causes the output unit to execute a notification to the userbased on a notification signal indicating a state of the vehicle thatthe communication unit receives from the vehicle when the terminaldevice moves out of a predetermined distance range in which the vehicleis included.

According to the third aspect of the present disclosure, it is possibleto notify solely the user that the state of the vehicle is not thepredetermined state through a sound or the like from the output unitmounted on the ear.

A fourth aspect of the present disclosure relates to a vehicle statepresentation method including: monitoring, by a computer of a vehicle, astate of the vehicle and transmitting a notification signal indicatingthat a state of the vehicle other than a predetermined state is detectedto a terminal device through wireless communication, the terminal deviceincluding an ear mounting unit including an output unit that is mountedon an ear of the user and performs a notification to the user throughsound or vibration; and causing, by the computer of the terminal device,the output unit to perform the notification to the user based on thenotification signal received from the vehicle through the wirelesscommunication when the terminal device moves out of a predetermineddistance range in which the vehicle is included.

According to the fourth aspect of the present disclosure, it is possibleto notify solely the user that the state of the vehicle is not thepredetermined state through a sound or the like from the output unitmounted on the ear.

According to the aspects of the present disclosure, it is possible toprovide the vehicle state presentation system capable of notificationthat it is difficult for a third party to notice and it is easy for theuser to notice since the notification to the user is performed through asound or the like from the output unit mounted on the ear when the userleaves the vehicle in a case where the state of the vehicle is not thepredetermined state.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Features, advantages, and technical and industrial significance ofexemplary embodiments will be described below with reference to theaccompanying drawings, in which like numerals denote like elements, andwherein:

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a vehicle state presentationsystem according to first to fourth embodiments;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a communicable rangeaccording to the first to fourth embodiments;

FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram illustrating a process according to thefirst embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram illustrating a process according to thesecond embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram illustrating a process according to thethird embodiment of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram illustrating a process according to thefourth embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Overview

Vehicle state presentation systems according to first to fourthembodiments notify a user leaving a vehicle that a state of the vehicleis not a predetermined state, through a sound or the like from an outputunit mounted on an ear of the user. Therefore, it is possible to notifythe user that the state of the vehicle is not the predetermined state sothat it is easy for the user to notice the fact and it is difficult fora third party to notice the fact.

First Embodiment

Hereinafter, a first embodiment will be described in detail withreference to the drawings.

Configuration

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a vehicle state presentationsystem 11 according to the present embodiment. The vehicle statepresentation system 11 includes a terminal device 110 and a vehicle 210.

The vehicle 210 includes a first controller 211 and a firstcommunication unit 212. The first controller 211 controls the firstcommunication unit 212 to perform wireless communication with theterminal device 110. In a case where a distance between the vehicle 210and the terminal device 110 is within a range in which the vehicle 210and the terminal device 110 can perform wireless communication with eachother, the first controller 211 executes a communication sequence forauthentication with the terminal device 110. For example, the firstcontroller 211 causes the first communication unit 212 to periodicallytransmit a signal and compares an identifier of the terminal device 110that the terminal device 110 within the wirelessly communicable distancetransmits in response to the signal with an identifier of a regularterminal device associated with the vehicle in advance to authenticatethe terminal device 110. Even when the terminal device 110 is within thecommunicable distance after the authentication, the first controller 211periodically communicates with the terminal device 110 and detects thatthe terminal device 110 is present within the distance. The firstcontroller 211 can monitor states of various devices (not illustrated)of the vehicle 210 and notify the terminal device 110 of the state ofthe vehicle from the first communication unit 212.

The terminal device 110 is a small device including an ear mounting unitthat is mounted on an ear of the user. The terminal device 110 includes,for example, a second controller 111, a second communication unit 112,an output unit 113, and an input unit 114. The output unit 113 includesa speaker capable of emitting sound to an external ear canal(hereinafter referred to as an “ear hole”) of the user. The input unit114 includes an authentication microphone that collects an echo soundwithin the ear hole of the user, and an utterance microphone thatcollects an uttered sound of the user. The second controller 111, forexample, causes the output unit 113 to emit an authentication sound tothe ear hole of the user, causes the authentication microphone of theinput unit 114 to acquire the echo sound of the authentication sound,and compares characteristics of the echo sound with characteristics ofan echo sound of a regular user registered in advance to authenticatethe user. The second controller 111 controls the second communicationunit 112 to execute the above-described wireless communication with thevehicle 210. The second controller 111 can acquire the state of thevehicle 210 based on a result of the communication. The secondcontroller 111 can generate content of notification to the user as avoice and causes the output unit 113 to output the voice. The secondcontroller 111 may include a determination unit that monitors a state ofcommunication radio waves that the second communication unit 112receives from the vehicle 210.

As described above, when the terminal device 110 authenticates the userand the vehicle 210 authenticates the terminal device 110, it isdesirable to be able to guarantee a combination between the vehicle andthe regular user of the vehicle. The authentication method describedabove is an example and may be modified. For example, the secondcontroller 111 of the terminal device 110 may acquire an identifier ofthe vehicle 210 through communication, and authenticate the vehiclebased on the identifier. FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a range 500 inwhich the vehicle 210 and the terminal device 110 can wirelesslycommunicate with each other. The range 500 is, for example, a range ofabout 10 m or less from the vehicle.

Process

FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram illustrating a process of the terminaldevice 110 and the vehicle 210. This process will be described withreference to FIG. 3 .

Step S101: The first controller 211 of the vehicle 210 monitors, forexample, states of various devices based on information from variouscontrollers mounted on the vehicle. In this step, the first controller211 detects that the state of the vehicle is not a predetermined state.The predetermined state is a state in which a likelihood of a problemoccurring is reduced as compared with other states in terms of securityand power consumption even when the user leaves the vehicle and leavesthe vehicle. As an example, the predetermined state can be defined as astate in which all lamps are turned off, all of windows are closed, andall of doors are closed and locked in a state in which an engine isstopped and an ignition switch is turned off.

Step S102: When the first controller 211 of the vehicle 210 detects thatthe state of the vehicle 210 is in a state other than the predeterminedstate, the first controller 211 causes the first communication unit 212to transmit a notification signal, which is a signal indicating theabove fact. The second communication unit 112 of the terminal device 110receives the notification signal. The notification signal includesinformation indicating the state of the vehicle 210, such as a windowremaining open. Transmission of the notification signal as describedabove may be performed as part of the periodic communication describedabove or may be performed separately from the periodic communication.The notification signal may be periodically transmitted while the stateother than the predetermined state of the vehicle is continuing and thetransmission may be stopped when the state of the vehicle becomes thepredetermined state. Alternatively, the notification signal may betransmitted solely once when a state other than the predetermined stateof the vehicle is detected, and the signal indicating the above fact maybe transmitted when the state of the vehicle becomes the predeterminedstate. Alternatively, information indicating the current state may betransmitted regardless of whether or not the state of the vehicle 210 isthe predetermined state. By doing as described above, the terminaldevice 110 can acquire the information indicating the state of thevehicle 210 as long as the terminal device 110 is present within adistance in which the terminal device 110 can communicate with thevehicle 210.

Step S103: The first controller 211 of the vehicle 210 causes the firstcommunication unit 212 to transmit a radio signal as a part of theperiodic communication described above.

Step S104: The second controller 111 of the terminal device 110includes, for example, a determination unit that monitors a state of thecommunication radio waves from the vehicle 210. When the determinationunit detects that the state of the communication radio waves is thepredetermined state, the second controller 111 determines that theterminal device 110 has moved outside a predetermined distance range inwhich the vehicle 210 is included. As a predetermined state of thecommunication radio waves, for example, the determination unit maydetect that a radio wave strength of the communication radio wavesbecomes equal to or smaller than a predetermined value. Alternatively,the determination unit may detect that communication radio waves cannotbe received even after waiting for a certain period of time. Byproviding the determination unit as described above, it is possible todetect that the user wearing the terminal device 110 leaves the vehicle210 using communication radio waves without using any other means.However, the determination unit may detect that the user leaves thevehicle 210 using other means.

Step S105: The second controller 111 of the terminal device 110 causesthe output unit 113 to execute a notification to the user based on thereceived notification signal. For example, when the second controller111 determines that the state of the vehicle 210 is a state other thanthe predetermined state based on the notification signal, the secondcontroller 111 causes the output unit 113 to perform the notificationindicating the fact. The notification can be performed, for example, byemitting a sound “a window is open”, which indicates a specific state tothe ear hole of the user. Alternatively, the notification is not limitedunless it is difficult for a third party to notice, and the output unit113 may include a vibrator and perform the notification throughvibration, for example. The user who has received the notification canreturn to the vehicle 210 to close the window, and cause the vehicle 210to enter the predetermined state. Accordingly, this sequence ends.

For example, the terminal device 110 may have a configuration in whichall of the units are included in the ear mounting unit that is mountedon the ear of the user, or may have a configuration in which at leastthe output unit 113 is included in the ear mounting unit, the otherunits are included in a mobile terminal device such as a smart phone,and the ear mounting unit and the mobile terminal device communicatewith each other wirelessly or by a wire. It is desirable for userauthentication using the above-described echo sound to be performed, butthis is not indispensable. When a determination is made that theterminal device 110 has moved out of the predetermined distance range inwhich the vehicle 210 is included, it is assumed that the terminaldevice 110 simply notifies the user that the state of the vehicle is notthe predetermined state. Thereafter, when the terminal device 110determines that the terminal device 110 has returned within thepredetermined distance range in which the vehicle 210 is included basedon a radio wave strength of the communication radio waves or the like,the terminal device 110 may notify the user of a specific state such as“the window is open”. The above-described notification signal may be asignal simply indicating that the state of the vehicle is not thepredetermined state, and the signal indicating the specific state may bea signal that the terminal device 110 separately acquires bycommunicating with the vehicle 210 when a determination is made that theterminal device 110 has returned to be within the predetermined distancerange in which the vehicle 210 is included. The user may customize thestate of the vehicle 210 to be the predetermined state.

Effects

In the first embodiment, it is possible to notify solely the user thatthe state of the vehicle is not the predetermined state through a soundor the like from the output unit mounted on the ear. Accordingly, it ispossible to perform the notification in such a manner it is easy for theuser to notice the notification while achieving improvement of securityby making it difficult for the third party to recognize thenotification. The notification is performed solely when the user wearingthe terminal device leaves the predetermined range including thevehicle. Therefore, when the user is not separated a predetermineddistance or more, for example, when the user intentionally temporarilygets off the vehicle in a state other than the predetermined state ofthe vehicle and intends to ride the vehicle again immediately, thenotification is not performed and troubles can be reduced.

Second Embodiment

Hereinafter, a second embodiment will be described in detail withreference to the drawings.

Configuration

Since a vehicle state presentation system according to the secondembodiment has the same functional blocks as the vehicle statepresentation system 11 according to the first embodiment, the same orcorresponding components are denoted with the same reference numeralsand description of the same content will be omitted.

Process

In the second embodiment, an instruction can be received from the userto cause the vehicle 210 to execute an operation of setting thepredetermined state, after step S105 in the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram illustrating a process of the terminaldevice 110 and the vehicle 210. Since processes of steps S101 to S105are the same as those in the first embodiment, description will beomitted, and processes after step S105 will be described in FIG. 4 .

Step S201: After step S105, the input unit 114 of the terminal device110 receives a first input which is a predetermined input from the user.The first input can be performed, for example, by uttering predeterminedwords such as “close the window” to the utterance microphone of theinput unit 114. An input method is not limited thereto. For example,when the input unit 114 includes a motion sensor, the input can beperformed by a nodding operation in which the user shakes a neck oncehorizontally.

Step S202: When the second controller 111 of the terminal device 110analyzes content received by the input unit 114 and determines that thecontent is the first input, the second controller 111 of the terminaldevice 110 causes the second communication unit 112 to transmit a firstinstruction signal according to the content. In a case where a method ofdetermining that the terminal device 110 has moved out of thepredetermined distance range in which the vehicle 210 is included when aradio wave strength of communication radio waves becomes equal to orsmaller than a predetermined value greater than 0 is adopted in stepS104, communication between the terminal device 110 and the vehicle 210can be performed from a place at a point in time at which thenotification is received in step S105, and therefore, the processes ofthe steps S201 and S202 can be performed even when the user does notmove from the place. However, in a case where a method of determiningthat the terminal device 110 has moved out of the predetermined distancerange in which the vehicle 210 is included when the communication radiowaves cannot be received even after waiting for a certain period isadopted in step S104, the communication between the terminal device 110and the vehicle 210 cannot be performed from the place at a point intime at which the notification is received in step S105, and therefore,the user needs to move in a direction in which the user approaches thevehicle from the place. Due to the movement, the terminal device 110 andthe vehicle 210 become able to communicate with each other, and theabove-described authentication between the terminal device 110 and thevehicle 210 is executed again. The user moves in a direction in whichthe user approaches the vehicle at the time of the input in step S201,such that the process of S202 can be suitably executed. Therefore, it isdesirable to notify the user of the fact that the user is needed toapproach the vehicle when the first input is performed, in advance or atthe time of the notification in step S105.

Step S203: The first communication unit 212 of the vehicle 210 receivesthe first instruction signal. According to the first instruction signal,the first controller 211 of the vehicle 210 executes the operation ofeach unit, such as closing of the window, so that the state of thevehicle 210 becomes the predetermined state. Then, this sequence ends.

Effects

In the second embodiment, when the notification indicating that thestate of the vehicle is not the predetermined state is received, theuser performs the predetermined first input to the terminal device.Thus, it is possible to remotely instruct the vehicle to execute theoperation of setting the predetermined state. Therefore, the user doesnot need to return to the vehicle in order to cause the vehicle toreturn to the predetermined state, and convenience can be improved.

Third Embodiment

Hereinafter, a third embodiment will be described in detail withreference to the drawings.

Configuration

Since the vehicle state presentation system according to the thirdembodiment has the same functional blocks as the vehicle statepresentation system 11 according to the first embodiment, the same orcorresponding components are denoted with the same reference numeralsand description of the same content will be omitted.

Process

In the third embodiment, when the state other than the predeterminedstate of the vehicle continues for a predetermined period after stepS105 in the first embodiment, it is possible to cause the vehicle 210 toexecute an operation of setting the predetermined state.

FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram illustrating a process of the vehicle 210.Since the processes of steps S101 to S105 are the same as those in thefirst embodiment, description thereof will be omitted, and FIG. 5illustrates a process that the vehicle 210 executes in parallel with thesequence illustrated in FIG. 3 in step S102 and subsequent steps.

Step S301: After step S102, the first controller 211 of the vehicle 210resets a timer and then starts counting of the timer.

Step S302: The first controller 211 of the vehicle 210 detects that apredetermined period has elapsed when a count value reaches apredetermined value. In this step, the first controller 211 does notdetect a change in the state of the vehicle for the predetermined periodand regards the state other than the predetermined state of the vehicleas continuing.

Step S303: The first controller 211 of the vehicle 210 executes theoperation of each unit, such as closing of the window, so that the stateof the vehicle 210 becomes the predetermined state. Then, this sequenceends. In step S302, when the state of the vehicle changes for thepredetermined period to be the predetermined state, the user is regardedas manipulating the vehicle to set the predetermined state and this stepS303 is not executed. In step S302, when the state of the vehiclechanges for the predetermined period and changes to a state other thanthe predetermined state, the user is regarded as manipulating thevehicle to intentionally set the state other than the predeterminedstate, and this step S303 may not be executed or may be executed for amore suitable predetermined state.

The second embodiment may be incorporated in the third embodiment. Thatis, the vehicle 210 may execute an operation of immediately setting thepredetermined state when an instruction input is received from the userfor the predetermined period, and execute the operation of setting thepredetermined state after a predetermined period has elapsed when theinstruction input is not received from the user for the predeterminedperiod. The vehicle 210 may be caused to receive a signal indicatingthat the terminal device 110 has performed the notification to the userin step S105 and the counting may be started when the signal isreceived, instead of starting the counting process of step S301 afterstep S102. Alternatively, in the periodic communication in step S103,the counting may be started when the vehicle 210 detects that the radiowave strength of the communication radio waves is reduced or thecommunication radio waves cannot be received. In any case, the countvalue may be set so that a predetermined period elapses after thenotification in step S105.

Effects

In the third embodiment, when the user leaves the vehicle for apredetermined period without manipulating the vehicle after receivingthe notification indicating that the state of the vehicle is not thepredetermined state, the user can execute the operation of automaticallysetting the predetermined state. Therefore, the user does not need toperform any action to set the vehicle to the predetermined state. Thus,it is possible to improve convenience.

Fourth Embodiment

Hereinafter, a fourth embodiment will be described in detail withreference to the drawings.

Configuration

Since a vehicle state presentation system according to the fourthembodiment has the same functional blocks as the vehicle statepresentation system 11 according to the first embodiment, the same orcorresponding components are denoted with the same reference numeralsand description of the same content will be omitted.

Process

In the fourth embodiment, an instruction from the user can be receivedwithin a predetermined period and the vehicle can be caused to be in astate other than the predetermined state after step S301 in the thirdembodiment.

FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram illustrating a process of the terminaldevice 110 and the vehicle 210. Since processes of steps S101 to S105are the same as those in the first embodiment, description andillustration in FIG. 6 thereof will be omitted.

Step S401: The first controller 211 of the vehicle 210 starts thecounting of the timer after step S102, similar to step S301 of the thirdembodiment.

Step S402: In this step, it is assumed that the input unit 114 of theterminal device 110 receives a second input as a predetermined inputfrom the user before the predetermined period elapses. The second inputcan be performed, for example, by uttering predetermined words such as“leave it as is” to the utterance microphone of the input unit 114. Aninput method is not limited thereto. For example, when the input unit114 includes a motion sensor, the input can be performed by a noddingoperation in which the user shakes a neck once horizontally. In a casewhere a method of determining that the terminal device 110 has moved outof the predetermined distance range in which the vehicle 210 is includedwhen the communication radio waves cannot be received even after waitingfor a certain period is adopted in step S104 as in the secondembodiment, the user moves in a direction in which the user approachesthe vehicle before the user performs the second input.

Step S403: When the second controller 111 of the terminal device 110analyzes content received by the input unit 114 and determines that thecontent is the second input, the second controller 111 of the terminaldevice 110 causes the second communication unit 112 to transmit a secondinstruction signal according to the content.

Step S404: The first communication unit 212 of the vehicle 210 receivesthe second instruction signal. The first controller 211 of the vehicle210 stops the counting of the timer according to the second instructionsignal. When the second instruction signal is received as describedabove, the first controller 211 does not execute the operation ofsetting the vehicle 210 to the predetermined state, and this sequenceends.

Step S405: In this step, it is assumed that, for the predeterminedperiod, the first communication unit 212 does not receive the secondinstruction signal, the first controller 211 does not detect a change inthe state of the vehicle, and the state other than the predeterminedstate of the vehicle continues. In this case, the first controller 211of the vehicle 210 detects that a predetermined period has elapsed sincethe count value is a predetermined value, as in step S302 in the thirdembodiment.

Step S406: The first controller 211 of the vehicle 210 executes theoperation of each unit such as closing of the window so that the stateof the vehicle 210 becomes the predetermined state, as in step S303 inthe third embodiment. Accordingly, this sequence is ended.

The second embodiment may be incorporated in the fourth embodiment. Thatis, the first controller 211 of the vehicle 210 may immediately executethe operation of setting the vehicle to the predetermined state when aninstruction input from the user is received for the predeterminedperiod. In step S404, the sequence is not ended, the same processes asthose in steps S405 and S406 are performed, and the first controller 211of the vehicle 210 may execute the operation of setting the vehicle tothe predetermined state after a predetermined time longer than theabove-described predetermined time has elapsed.

Effects

In the fourth embodiment, when the user leaves the vehicle for apredetermined period without manipulating the vehicle after receivingthe notification indicating that the state of the vehicle is not thepredetermined state, the vehicle automatically enters the predeterminedstate. However, when the user performs a predetermined second inputwithin a predetermined period, the vehicle can be prevented fromautomatically entering the predetermined state. Therefore, when the userintends to leave the vehicle while maintaining the vehicle in the stateother than the predetermined state, the state other than thepredetermined state of the vehicle is maintained according to theintention. Thus, it is possible to improve convenience.

According each of the embodiments described above, it is possible toprovide the vehicle state presentation system capable of notifying theuser leaving the vehicle that the state of the vehicle is not thepredetermined state, in such a manner that solely the user easilynotices the fact. Accordingly, for example, when the user leaves thevehicle in a state unsuitable for security or power consumption, it ispossible to notify the user of the fact without being known to a thirdparty and to request an appropriate action.

The present disclosure can be recognized not only as the vehicle statepresentation system, but also as a terminal device and a vehicleconstituting the vehicle state presentation system, a vehicle statepresentation method to be executed by a processor of a computer includedin the terminal device and the vehicle, and a program therefor.

The present disclosure is useful for a system that notifies a user of astate of a vehicle or the like.

What is claimed is:
 1. A vehicle state presentation system comprising: avehicle; and a terminal device that is separate from the vehicle andthat includes (i) a receiver that receives a notification signal fromthe vehicle which indicates that the vehicle is in a first state whichis different from a second state, (ii) a notification unit that notifiesa user of the terminal device of the first state of the vehicle based onthe notification signal, (iii) an audio input unit that receives, fromthe user of the terminal device, an audio input which commands the firststate to be maintained, and (iv) a transmitter that transmits a signalto the vehicle based on the audio input received by the audio inputunit, wherein the vehicle includes a control unit that performs controlthat maintains the first state after lapse of a predetermined time froma time that the notification unit of the terminal device notifies of thefirst state of the vehicle when a reception unit of the vehicle receivesthe signal transmitted from the transmitter within the predeterminedtime, and performs control that changes the first state to become thesecond state after the lapse of the predetermined time when thereception unit of the vehicle does not receive the signal transmittedfrom the transmitter within the predetermined time.
 2. The vehicle statepresentation system according to claim 1, wherein the notification unitissues a notification indicating that a window of the vehicle is open asthe first state, and the control unit performs control to close thewindow of the vehicle after the lapse of the predetermined time, whenthe reception unit of the vehicle does not receive the signaltransmitted from the transmitter within the predetermined time.
 3. Thevehicle state presentation system according to claim 1, wherein thevehicle further comprises: a detection unit that detects whether thevehicle is in the first state, wherein the vehicle sends thenotification signal to the terminal device when the detection unitdetects that the vehicle is in the first state.
 4. The vehicle statepresentation system according to claim 1, wherein when the audio inputunit receives an audio command to switch the vehicle to the secondstate, the transmitter of the terminal device transmits a second signalcommanding the vehicle to become the second state to a reception unit ofthe vehicle, and the control unit performs control to switch the vehicleto the second state commanded by the second signal before lapse of thepredetermined time, when the reception unit of the vehicle receives thesecond signal within the predetermined time.
 5. A vehicle statepresentation method comprising: a processor of a vehicle transmitting anotification signal to a terminal device that is separate from thevehicle, the notification signal indicating that the vehicle is in afirst state which is different from a second state; a notification unitof the terminal device notifying a user of the terminal device of thefirst state of the vehicle based on the notification signal receivedfrom the vehicle by a receiver of the terminal device; an audio inputunit of the terminal device receiving, from the user of the terminaldevice, an audio input which commands the first state to be maintained;a transmitter of the terminal device transmitting a signal to thevehicle based on the audio input received by the audio input unit; theprocessor of the vehicle maintaining the first state after lapse of apredetermined time from a time that the notification unit of theterminal device notifies the user of the first state of the vehicle whena reception unit of the vehicle receives the signal transmitted from thetransmitter of the terminal unit within the predetermined time, and theprocessor of the vehicle performing control that changes the first stateto the second state after the lapse of the predetermined time when thereception unit of the vehicle does not receive the signal from thetransmitter of the terminal device within the predetermined time.
 6. Thevehicle state presentation system according to claim 1, wherein theterminal device includes an ear mounting unit configured to be mountedto an ear of the user, the ear mounting unit including a speaker thatemits sound to an ear hole of the user, an authentication microphonethat collects an echo sound within the ear hole of the user, and anutterance microphone that collects an uttered sound of the user, and acontroller of the terminal device performs an authentication process inwhich the speaker emits an authentication sound to the ear hole of theuser, the authentication microphone acquires an echo sound of theauthentication sound, and the controller authenticates the user bycomparing the acquired echo sound to an echo sound of a registered userof the terminal device that is registered in advance of theauthentication process.
 7. The vehicle state presentation methodaccording to claim 5, wherein the terminal device includes an earmounting unit configured to be mounted to an ear of the user, the earmounting unit including a speaker that emits sound to an ear hole of theuser, an authentication microphone that collects an echo sound withinthe ear hole of the user, and an utterance microphone that collects anuttered sound of the user, and a controller of the terminal deviceperforms an authentication process by causing the speaker to emit anauthentication sound to the ear hole of the user, acquiring an echosound of the authentication sound by the authentication microphone, andauthenticating the user by comparing the acquired echo sound to an echosound of a registered user of the terminal device that is registered inadvance of the authentication process.